this is peripheral to the article and not new ground, but i just plain don’t trust POS tipping. if i am getting takeout from wherever… i walk up, order my stuff to the person, and it asks for a tip. i wait around and then they call my number at the window, i get my slop and walk away. those systems. first off, why does every transaction come with a tip question? waitstaff are paid sub minimum wage, which is criminal, but i understand the expectation of tips there. or like when somebody is carrying my shit, cutting my hair, or doing a bunch of heavy lifting, like furniture movers. but now it seems every interaction is suggesting a 10-20% tip out. buy a bottle of whatever from the self-serve fridge that i picked out and carried up to the cashier… 15% tip? if that’s reasonable on top of the sticker price of everything having gone up 30%, i guess i’m not buying shit anymore. and maybe that’s the message here: i can’t afford any of it anymore. there is a takeout place that is very reasonable and no bs and they have disabled the tip request on their little POS. it’s just two people in a tiny room with a slit in the front door who do everything, open lunch only, and crank out the best food in town. it’s my favorite place. they have a little cup for cash tips, but it’s clearly bonus and not some kind of responsibility shift onto the customers for a poor business model.

but more to the point, how in the living fuck do i even know that the tipping system for most places is going to the workers? there is precisely one place in my town that is worker owned, so yeah. i can tip confidently at the POS there. otherwise, it’s all invisible. i have no clue what cut is going to the processor, the owner, the person who actually made the thing vs the person who tapped the buttons, etc etc. i’m just supposed to believe it all goes to the person i expect it should. i hate it.